iStock/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) — Taking birth control pills has previously been associated with several non-contraceptive benefits. But now, a new study shows the pill can help protect women from certain cancers for decades after a woman stops taking it.
“This latest study reinforces what we have known for decades,” ABC’s Chief Women’s Health Correspondent Dr. Jennifer Ashton said on Good Morning America Friday. “But this study represented the longest follow up.”
“[Researchers] looked at 46,000 women, followed them up to 44 years and found that the risks of certain types of cancers were dramatically reduced. We’re talking lower risk of ovarian cancer, lower risk of endometrial cancer — which is a type of uterine cancer — and lower risk of colorectal cancer,” she added.
On the flip side, Ashton noted that taking the pill does slightly increase the risk of developing a blood clot.
“Some studies, though not this one, have shown a slight increase in the risk of cervical cancer and breast cancer but the breast cancer risk returns back to baseline after a woman stops taking the pill,” she added.
If you choose not to take birth control pills, there are other ways of reducing cancer risks. Ashton said pregnancy lowers the risk of uterine and ovarian cancer; avoiding obesity lowers the risks of ovarian, endometrial and colorectal cancer; and taking an aspirin can lower the risk of colorectal cancer.
New data also shows that removing the fallopian tubes can cut the risk of ovarian cancer, she said.
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